Water Tanks – Engadi Ministries

Siih ruk’ k’uxliis Ma’xta K’acharik wi’ ma’xta ha’.

Ma’ jenaj ko’lomaj ma’ ru’um Kajaw Jesus.

San Juan 4:14 (Pokomchi)

Situated in the northern region of Guatemala, approximately 130 miles from the capital city, San Cristobal Verapaz is populated by Pokomchi Mayan Indians. The area is marked by its constant rains and susceptibility to flooding. The majority of the population engages in some aspect of agriculture, primarily coffee, cardamom, and avocados. The distribution of portable water is inadequate. What water they are able to acquire is many times contaminated, and becomes scarce during the dry season. Families are compelled to rely on water from wells dug in the valleys where it collects. Due to the topography, a significant number of residents, particularly women, must carry water from the valley floor to their mountaintop homes, navigating steep terrain and staircases carved into the mud.

The hamlets in this region have been entirely overlooked and abandoned by the government for years. Public schools are poorly furnished. A large percentage of the population can’t speak Spanish, only their indigenous language of Pokomchi. The majority of families live in scarcity, lacking access to basic resources, relying solely on their crops, and living in homes made of wood, corrugated metal, and dirt floors.

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Families impacted

With such a vital and crucial resource like water, the lives of the Pokomchi people in these communities have been transformed. Now, they can collect rainwater and store it within their homes. The elderly no longer have to travel long distances carrying the essential liquid, mothers don’t have to leave their children alone while going to the well, and there will be no shortage in the summer. More importantly, we want to convey to these communities that Jesus is the Living Water without whom we cannot live.